L4b - A tectonic comparison - Tohoku, Japan Flashcards
What was the earthquake magnitude, what plate movements were involved and how many deaths?
PRIMARY IMPACT
- 9.0Mw in March 2011
- Pacific plate subducts Eurasian plate
- Approx. 1000 deaths
What primary impacts were there?
- 1000 buildings damaged
- 800 aftershocks of 4.5Mw
- Transport infrastructure affected
What was the economic damage like?
US $300bn
What natural secondary impact was there?
Tsnumai - earthquake focus was 130km offshore and shallow - killed > 17,000
- 127,000 building collapses and 1.2m severely damaged
What happened at Fukushima?
Dam collapsed causing a nuclear generator meltdown as cooling systems failed leading to secondary fires
What foreign short term relief was provided?
Search and rescue teams from NZL, USA, UK, China, S. Korea, India
Red Cross and Crescent + other NGOs provided support
What short term relief was successful?
10,000s of temporary houses built within 2 weeks
Transportation and communication quickly restored
What hampered rescue efforts?
Road disruptions and bad weather
130,000 displaced with many in shelters but there was limited food and water supply
What long term prediction systems did they have prior to the earthquake?
PTWC (Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre) to tell the public
1,000 seismometres in Japan
Earthquake was detected 1 minute before reaching inland
What physical precautions were put into place?
Huge seawall to protect the coastline but it couldn’t withstand the Tsunami
What long term precautions did the government take?
Evacuated 140,000 people within a 20 mile radius of Fukushima and good government relations meant an abundance of aid
What long term planning has there been since?
From 2007 Japanese smartphones have warning systems
National disaster prevention day on the 1st September with practice drills and education
